Pop star Chappell Roan says she’ll vote for Harris after previously waffling on 2024 election choice

By Donald Judd and Elizabeth Wagmeister, CNN

(CNN) — Pop star Chappell Roan announced Wednesday in a post to social media platform TikTok that she plans to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris in November, ending days of speculation after she told the Guardian in an interview published Friday that “there’s problems on both sides.”

Roan, whose fame skyrocketed over the summer after drawing eye-popping crowds at the Lollapalooza and Governor’s Ball music festivals, told the Guardian, “I don’t feel pressured to endorse someone,” but that for her, the most important issue is transgender rights. She said, “They cannot have cis people making decisions for trans people, period.”

That response drew fierce blowback from critics, especially following the news she’d declined an invitation to perform at a White House LGBTQ+ Pride event earlier this year – in a separate interview with Rolling Stone published earlier this month, Roan said she made the decision over the White House’s position on the war in Gaza, telling the outlet, “I won’t be a monkey for Pride.”

In a pair of videos posted to TikTok this week, however, Roan – who identifies as a member of the LGBTQ+ community and has often credited drag queens for inspiring her music and performances – sought to clarify her comments on the upcoming election.

“If you come to my shows, if you read my full interviews, if you literally know anything about me and for what I stand for. You know that this is not lip service, this is not virtue signaling … actions speak louder than words, and actions speak louder than an endorsement,” she said in a video posted Monday. “So, hearing from my mouth if you’re still wondering – no, I’m not voting for (Donald) Trump, and yes, I will always question those in power and those making decisions over other people, and I will stand up for what’s right and what I believe in.”

And in an additional post Wednesday, she again clarified her comments, reiterating that while “I don’t agree with a lot of what is going on with like policies – like, obviously, f**k the policies of the right, but also f**k some of the policies on the left.”

“F**k Trump, for f**king real, but f**k some of the shit that has gone down in the Democratic party that has failed people like me and you – and more so Palestine, and more so every marginalized community in the world,” she said. “So yeah – I’m voting for f**king Kamala, but I’m not settling for what has been offered, because that’s questionable.”

CNN has reached out to the Harris campaign. A representative for Roan declined to comment further when contacted by CNN.

The saga marks the latest example of the tightrope celebrities in the age of TikTok and social media have had to tread in voicing their support – or silence – on politics.

Earlier this month, mega-star Taylor Swift announced her support for Harris’ campaign, ending weeks of speculation from fans concerned over her closeness with Brittany Mahomes, wife of Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who’s signaled support for Trump on social media.

After Swift endorsed Harris, the superstar faced backlash from Trump, who told Fox News that he “was not a Taylor Swift fan” and said that she will “probably pay a price for it in the marketplace.”

The-CNN-Wire
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